After joking and brushing off the allegations and controversy that surrounded him, swift punishment has been handed down to Gilbert Arenas. Find out what’s really going on with Agent Zero after the jump.

It had seemed that the NBA was looking to wait until after the legal proceedings had taken course before handing out any type of punishment for Arenas. However, his ongoing antics caused the problems to escalate.

Here are a few of his tweets:

• “i wake up this morning and seen i was the new JOHN WAYNE..lmao media is too funny”
• “As for the reporter who broke the story – NY post should eject Peter V FROM WRITNG EVERY AGAIN”
• “for P Vecsey-ur articles r very entertaining and exciting..its like AND 1 basketball..great to watch but just not the real thing”

Shortly following the emergence of his story in the news, Arenas nonchalantly replied, “I hear it was the O.K. Corral. I’ll put the real story out in a couple of days. That’s not the real story.”

Of course, all of this reached its peak with Arenas’s hand gesture during his team’s pre-game ritual in a win vs. the Philadelphia 76ers.

Arenas, pointing his index fingers like guns

David Stern, commissioner of the NBA, sprang into action after this final straw and released this statement:

“The possession of firearms by an NBA player in an NBA arena is a matter of the utmost concern to us. I initially thought it prudent to refrain from taking immediate action because of the pendency of a criminal investigation involving the office of the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia and the Metropolitan Police Department, and the consideration of this matter by a grand jury sitting in the District of Columbia. For the same reason, I directed the Wizards to refrain from taking any action. Wizards personnel continue to be interviewed by law enforcement authorities, some are scheduled for appearance before the grand jury and the investigation is proceeding with the intensity that one would expect for such a serious incident.”

“Although it is clear that the actions of Mr. Arenas will ultimately result in a substantial suspension, and perhaps worse, his ongoing conduct has led me to conclude that he is not currently fit to take the court in an NBA game. Accordingly, I am suspending Mr. Arenas indefinitely, without pay, effective immediately pending the completion of the investigation by the NBA.”

To Arenas’s credit, it does appear that early reports of the confrontation were wrong.

While it was previously reported that Arenas had pulled a gun on a teammate, it now seems that Arenas had laid his unloaded guns on a table in the locker room and left a note for his teammate, Javaris Crittenton.

Javaris Crittenton

The note allegedly had only two words on it: “Pick one.”

It turns out that Arenas’s earlier statement that he never brandished the weapons or pointed them at anyone turned out to be quite accurate.

Regardless of this, the damage had been done. Only after this embarrassing statement (and a quite substantial blow to his pocket) did Arenas show any true signs of remorse or repentance about the situation, releasing a statement of his own:

“I feel very badly that my actions have caused the NBA to suspend me, but I understand why the league took this action. I put the NBA in a negative light and let down my teammates and our fans. I am very sorry for doing that.

“While I never intended any harm or disrespect to the NBA or anyone else, my gun possession at the Verizon Center and my attempts at humor showed terrible judgment. I take full responsibility for my conduct.

“Earlier today, I called Commissioner Stern to apologize, and I hope we will be able to talk soon. I look forward to the day I can return to basketball. In the meantime, I will focus on dealing responsibly with this serious situation and I will continue to cooperate fully with the investigations by law enforcement and NBA authorities.”

Arenas faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted of felony criminal possession charges. He will also lose over $147,000 per game – some of which he could have held on to had his actions not caused his immediate suspension.

Why do professional athletes have to be hit in their pockets before there is any true effort on their part to learn from their mistakes and improve?

Is this a genuine apology from someone who is sorry for what he did or someone who is sorry that it will cost him money and the opportunity to play the game he loves?

Hit up the comments section and share your thoughts!

Main Image: Hustle Mill

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